Jose Maria del Nido Officially Resigns as Sevilla President

Jose Maria del Nido has officially confirmed his resignation as Sevilla president in an press conference on Monday.

Del Nido is leaving having been condemned to seven years in jail for the misappropriation of almost three million euros in public money while he worked for Marbella’s town hall between 1999 and 2003.

The original sentence was handed out in December 2011, remedy however, Del Nido remained as club chief for almost two years while the decision was appealed unsuccessfully as far as Spain’s Supreme Court.

“The day we hoped would never come has arrived,” Del Nido said. “I am leaving with profound sadness. I have resigned and am no longer connected to the club. This stains my image, but people are intelligent. I have very few stains and no serious ones as president of the club.”

Although reports in Spain suggest only an unlikely official pardon can stop him from serving the term decided by the country’s Supreme Court, the lawyer said he would continue to fight to avoid going to jail.

“I have worked until the last minute for Sevilla,” he said. “Now I am focusing on defending myself. There are legal mechanisms to avoid prison. I would not be the first person pardoned by the government in recent centuries. If I have to go to prison, I will do it with strength and dignity.”

Del Nido has had a relationship with Sevilla since 1986, and took over as president in 2002. The club then won the UEFA Cup, Copa del Rey, Spanish Supercopa and European Super Cup trophies under his guidance.

“In my first speech I said I would bring back pride in the Rojiblanco colours,” Del Nido said. “I believe I have fulfilled the most optimistic hopes for the club. I have made many mistakes, but I always took decisions based on what was best for Sevilla.”

Current vice-president Pepe Castro will step up for the moment until a new president is chosen, while Del Nido also appeared to confirm reports that his close ally and ex-club director general, Jose Maria Cruz, is to return as a board member, and his son, Jose Maria del Nido Carrasco, will also have a role to play in Sevilla’s future.

“Pepe Castro will take on my post until the vote takes place,” Del Nido said. “I hope the new president gets the same loyalty, affection, dedication and commitment. My sons will take on the roles at Sevilla which the new president assigns to them. The six are Sevilla socios since they were born.”

Del Nido finished his statement with a startling cry which was returned by many of those in attendance: “Shout with me: Viva el Sevilla, viva el Sevilla, viva el Sevilla!”

Madrid 2020 ‘greatly impressive’ says Reedie During IOC Visit

Sir Craig Reedie, the IOC head of the Evaluation Commission has revealed he found Madrid ‘greatly impressive’ during his visit to the Spanish city for the bidding of the 2020 Olympics.

Just a few weeks ago Tokyo was rated ‘hugely impressive’ and when asked about the difference Sir Craig replied that they were equivocal, “If you want to translate ‘hugely’ for ‘greatly’ or vice versa, I’m quite comfortable about that.”

This should leave third and final city Istanbul in a quandary as to what will be their final report card.

Spain has been undergoing an economic crisis, however the government views bidding as a plum opportunity to jump start the economy and give the youth something to get inspired about. And it is proving to be working as the IOC released their support levels in the nation at 81% in favor.

And in spite of the country’s economic crisis Reedie clarified, “We were certainly made aware by the bid committee where the Spanish economy is, and we thank Madrid for their openness and honesty.

“They told us that the Spanish economy has had a very difficult time, but that it has stabilized and will improve, and we have noted that in our report.”

IOC Executive Director of the Olympic Games, Gilbert Felli, spoke about the added value of the Madrid bid as approximately 80% of the venues are already existing.

”A big part of the investment has been made already,” said Felli, “and that’s why it’s not as huge (an investment) as if you start from scratch.

“Therefore, the crisis will not affect this too much. Madrid has understood the changes they needed to make, and we have seen the quality of the guarantees and improvements in the process of Madrid’s bid.”

The IOC’s technical recommendations report will be released at the July 3/4 meeting in Lausanne giving the final outcome for each of the three cities carried out by the Evaluation Commission.

What city do you want to see host the 2020 Olympics? Have your say in the iSportconnect poll.

Paralympic Games Agitos Symbol Unveiled at Eurotunnel Folkestone Control Tower

With London 2012 Paralympic Games on the starting blocks, ambulance a building wrap around the Eurotunnel Folkestone Control Tower showing the Paralympic Games Agitos symbol and 21 Paralympic sport pictograms has been unveiled.

The wrap, diagnosis which is approximately 6.2m x 41m, diagnosis has been unveiled to excite and inspire people about the Paralympic Games which start on the 29 August. 4,200 athletes from 165 countries across the world are set to take part in 11 days of spectacular sport.

Seb Coe, LOCOG Chair said: “The Paralympic Agitos is an inspiring symbol, uniting athletes and people around the world. To athletes they represent the culmination of thousands of hours of training and reaching the highest level in sport.”

Jacques Gounon, Chairman and Chief Exec of Eurotunnel: “Eurotunnel is delighted to host the fantastic display of the Paralympic Agitos logo at its terminal in Folkestone. We are looking forward to the2012 Paralympic Games being another great sporting event this summer.”

Giant sets of Paralympic Agitos are being installed at iconic sites across the United Kingdom to excite and inspire people ahead of the Games and to demonstrate that London is ready to welcome the world once again.

T3Media to Mange Video Content for U.S. Soccer Federation

T3Media, Inc., a leading provider of cloud-based video management and licensing services, announced today that it signed an agreement with the U.S. Soccer Federation.

Under the deal, T3Media will be managing U.S. Soccer’s master-quality video assets and enabling access to the library through its Footage Licensing site, www.t3licensing.com.

“We are excited to make footage of our Men’s and Women’s National Teams accessible for online search, preview and download,” said U.S. Soccer CEO and Secretary General Dan Flynn. “Through our relationship with T3Media, the process to request and download U.S. Soccer footage will be simplified, allowing more organizations worldwide to integrate U.S. Soccer into their productions.”

The U.S. Soccer Collection, available exclusively through www.t3licensing.com, features footage of the National Team’s current star players — such as Abby Wambach, Hope Solo, Tim Howard and Landon Donovan. The Collection includes full-length broadcasts, fully-produced highlights, behind-the-scenes footage and stadium establishing shots from US-based international friendlies and home FIFA World Cup Qualifying matches. All content is backed by full-length games and new content is added regularly.

“We are looking forward to growing the value of the U.S. Soccer’s digital rights and opening up the Federation’s current and archival video library for new uses,” said Kevin Schaff, CEO and Founder of T3Media. “As the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ nears, our footage of the National Team will be an asset for organizations looking to cover the highly anticipated international sporting event.”

Economy Boost for Brazil when World Cup arrives

The one year countdown has started in London and the World Cup but in Brazil its a three year countdown to the 2014 soccer World Cup. The event will boost host country Brazil’s economy by 1.5 percent of its annual gross domestic product, prostate said the chief economist of Itau Unibanco Holding SA (ITUB4), and Latin America’s largest bank by market value.

Brazil has a budget $ US 20.6 billion to construct the roads, stadiums, airports and other projects required to host sport’s most-watched event.

Its hoped that this investment will create 250,000 new jobs and generate about $24 billion, Itau’s Ilan Goldfajn told reporters at a press briefing in Rio de Janeiro today.

“The impact of the spending both on infrastructure and spending by the private sector produces 1 percent of GDP, the rest comes from the multiplier effect,” Goldfajn said. Itau is an official World Cup sponsor.

Past hosts such as Germany and South Africa saw GDP increases of 0.5 percent during the World Cup year, according to FIFA and government figures.

Work still hasn’t been completed on any of Brazil’s 12 stadiums to host games, airports must be renovated to cope with the demands of moving millions of visitors and the country’s hotel inventory needs to be expanded.

RFU Appoint Aqueduct as Lead Digital Partner

The Rugby Football Union (RFU) has announced the appointment of strategic creative agency Aqueduct on a four-year contract, sale becoming the lead single digital partner developing all aspects of RFU digital marketing and online advertising, as well as its website.

The brief set for Aqueduct by the RFU includes to broaden rugby’s appeal, develop interest in the game at a grass roots level, encourage more people to play the game, and draw in those from a broader social demographic of society.

Following its appointment, Aqueduct will be putting together a digital campaign promoting the RFU in the run up to this years Rugby World Cup taking place during  September and October in New Zealand, whilst at the same time working on producing digital communications that increase interest in rugby across the UK.

Rob Oubridge, Managing Director at Aqueduct said: “These are exciting times for rugby as we have recently seen with the Six Nations. The rugby ‘market’ is in a fertile state – like snooker in the 80’s and golf in the 90’s – so, leveraging this and developing the game in the UK from grass roots up is of the upmost importance.

“While the continued success of the national team is fantastic and of huge importance, creating opportunities for local teams, for women to play the game, and for kids to get increasingly involved is something that we can put all our creative skills into developing.”

Nick Shaw, Head of Digital at RFU said: “We are really delighted to be working with Aqueduct. Throughout the whole pitch process they showed a really passion and understanding for rugby in England and we are looking forward to working closely with them to enhance and broaden our digital offering”.

Aqueduct will work alongside the RFU’s other agencies, in the brand, marketing and media relations area.

Hearts Exit Administration

Hearts in the Scottish Championship have officially revealed their exit from administration.

Glasgow-based accountancy firm BDO, appointed to run the club last June, officially ended their involvement at the Court of Session in Edinburgh on Monday.

The news comes after businesswoman Ann Budge bought the club for £2.5m last month, ending almost an entire year of uncertainty over the future of one of Scottish football’s oldest and most successful clubs.

Hearts were deducted 15 points after slipping into administration on June 19 last year, with £25m worth of debts accrued by previous owner Vladimir Romanov, which resulted in their relegation from the Scottish Premiership for the first time in 32 years.

But the club, who appointed a new managerial team of former Scotland coach Craig Levein and Robbie Neilson in May, will now be able to build for next season in a Scottish Championship which includes Rangers and city rivals HIbernian.

Mrs Budge, Hearts’ executive chairwoman, told Sky Sports News: “As you can imagine everyone in the office is swinging from the rooftops at this news.

“We are really, really pleased. To be honest there have been lots of days when I thought this day would never come. but clearly since we managed to get the deal over the line this was only going to be a matter of time.

“The hard work starts now, but we are very optimistic about the future for the club. It is going to be a fantastic season next year which everyone can look forward to with great hope and enthusiasm.”

Spalding Introduces UNITE Basketballs Designed for Each Euroleague Team

Euroleague Basketball and Spalding joined forces once again to bring joy to the fans of basketball and memorabilia collectors all across the continent. The two partners are pleased to announce the release of uniquely-designed UNITE team basketballs that Spalding has created specifically for the Turkish Airlines Euroleague. 

The vibrant ball comes with a distinctive UNITE design that radiates with team spirit as it features customized colors and logos for each team participating in the 2013-2014 Turkish Airlines Euroleague season. Team colors are enhanced with deep channels, and durable rubber cover material provides a perfect touch for use in playing outdoors. This remarkable basketball made out of high-quality materials, whether used on the court or displayed as a commemorative item, symbolizes the very best of 2013-14 season, which is nearing its climax at the Final Four in Milan. 

Spalding became the official global provider of official basketballs for both the Turkish Airlines Euroleague and the Eurocup before 2012-13 season. With the collaboration of the competition’s top stars, Spalding has since developed the definitive Euroleague Basketball official ball before the start of the 2012-13 Turkish Airlines Euroleague playoffs.

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Jockey Club Elects New Members

British horseracing commercial group, The Jockey Club, have announced the election of three Honorary Members and six Ordinary Members, effective 1st January 2014.

Honorary Members elected are:

  • ·         Sheikh Hamad bin Abdulla bin Khalifa al Thani – leading racehorse owner and breeder through Qatar Racing and British Champions Series sponsor through QIPCO
  • ·         Sheikh Fahad bin Abdulla bin Khalifa al Thani – leading racehorse owner and breeder through Qatar Racing and British Champions Series sponsor through QIPCO
  • ·         Edward Gillespie – 32 years running and developing The Jockey Club’s flagship Cheltenham Racecourse, Chairman of the Pony Racing Authority and winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2011 Sport Industry Awards

Ordinary Members elected are:

  • ·         Justin Dowley – Racing: racehorse owner and non-executive director of Ascot Authority (Holdings) Ltd; Professional: former Vice Chairman of Nomura International plc and Head of Investment Banking at Merrill Lynch
  • ·         Bjorn Nielsen – Racing: racehorse owner and breeder, with gallops in Lambourn; Professional: hedge fund manager for Tudor Investment Corp
  • ·         The Hon Rose Paterson – Racing: next Chairman and current racecourse committee director at Aintree Racecourse; Professional: Office Manager for The Rt Hon Owen Paterson MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, formerly senior roles in Sotheby’s Paintings Department and The Daily Telegraph’s northern Art Critic
  • ·         Richard Pilkington – Racing: racehorse owner and racecourse committee director at Newmarket Racecourses; Professional: insurance broker at Marsh McLennan
  • ·         William Rucker – Racing: racehorse owner and breeder; Professional: Chief Executive of Lazard in the UK, Chairman of Crest Nicholson Holdings plc and Quintain Estates & Development plc and non-executive director of Rentokil Initial plc
  • ·         Martin St Quinton – Racing: racehorse owner and racecourse committee director at Epsom Downs Racecourse; Professional: Chief Executive of Chisholm Computers, Vice Chairman and major shareholder in Gloucester Rugby Club, former Chief Executive of Azzurri and Danka International Operations

Members were elected at The Jockey Club Members’ Winter meeting, held today in London.

Nicholas Wrigley, Senior Steward (Non-Executive chairman) of The Jockey Club, said: “It is an honour to welcome Sheikh Hamad and Sheikh Fahad as Honorary Members of The Jockey Club in recognition of their clear commitment to British racing, which is of great benefit to our sport.

“I am also delighted to welcome Edward Gillespie as an Honorary Member. This is recognition of Edward’s long service and significant contribution to Jockey Club Racecourses and Jump racing more broadly.

“Justin, Bjorn, Rose, Richard, William and Martin joining us as Members is excellent news for The Jockey Club. Each has made a significant contribution to British racing in their own way. They are highly capable people who will strengthen our efforts to support the long-term health of our sport.”

Paralympic Tickets Sell Out in Hours

The latest Paralympic tickets that were released by the London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) have sold out in a matter of hours.

LOCOG released 100, treat 000 Olympic Park tickets and 40, click 000 event tickets on Wednesday and it has now been confirmed that they sold out in two to three hours.

The Paralympic Games in London have sold more tickets than any previous tournament and could be the first ever Games to completely sell-out, showing a huge rise in popularity for the Games.

Tickets for the Olympic Park started at just £1 for children and £5 for adults, with ticket holders able to watch events on a big screen and “experience the atmosphere of the Park.”

LOCOG have confirmed more tickets will go on sale before the opening ceremony on Wednesday and throughout the Games which run until 9 September.

The Paralympics have currently sold 2.3 million of the 2.5 million available.